Canadians pride ourselves on being positive contributors to global affairs. We want to do our part.
The Trudeau government has embraced this national self-image. The best minister has stated that “Canada will require on a new leadership role internationally” and it has pledged $2.65 billion to assist developing countries tackle climate change as part of this vision of worldwide leadership.
Yet Canada’s real contribution to global climate change isn’t financial pledges. And because the supply of under two per cent of worldwide emissions, neither will major domestic emissions reductions.
It may seem counterintuitive, but our biggest contribution might be to develop our energy resources and sell them to developing countries that rely on dirtier energy sources. A pro-resource development agenda may not only be great for the Canadian economy, it can be good for the planet.
Let’s use China as a case study. China has become the world’s largest energy consumer and largest supply of energy-related carbon emissions. Two-thirds of China’s energy consumption derives from coal. Coal has got the highest carbon content associated with a fossil fuel. Projections show that China’s energy consumption will continue to increase, albeit at a slower pace than we have witnessed. Chinese policy would be to shift its dependency from coal to cleaner energy sources within the coming decades.
Develop our resources then sell these to developing countries that rely on dirtier energy sources
Here’s where Canada’s energy resources come into play.
Canada is already the fifth-largest gas producer and has enough gas reserves to meet current national energy interest in 300 years. We’ve plenty of supply to export. And this matters because gas is really a far cleaner option to coal. Natural gas combustion generates 50 per cent fewer emissions than coal. Gas-fired generating stations will also be more energy efficient than coal-fired plants.
Oilsands development is another cleaner alternative for countries like China that are balancing rising consumption demands and environmental goals. Consider, for example, that the oilsands would be the third-largest supply of proven crude oil reserves on the planet and projections reveal that, notwithstanding the sector’s current challenges, production is bound to grow for years to come.
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As for its environmental footprint, analysis shows that the emissions intensity of oilsands development is not from whack in accordance with other comparable powers. According to a 2013 report in the Department of Natural Resources: “Recent independent research indicates that oilsands emissions act like numerous crudes, both heavy and light.” This accords with work by respected climate scientist and B.C. Green MLA Andrew Weaver, far from a proponent of oilsands development, which finds that burning the earth’s coal reserves will contribute 40 times just as much to global warming as exploiting all oilsands reserves. And also the authorities reports that oilsands development is really becoming more efficient – between 1990 and 2011, oilsands greenhouse gas emissions per barrel were reduced by more than one-quarter and are expected to decline over the future years.
The point is that the oilsands, too, can provide a cleaner alternative energy source for developing countries.
Remember, the aim would be to contribute to addressing global global warming. The issue, then, is how can Canada make a meaningful contribution?
We can perform our part with respect to curbing domestic emissions, but we should also be cognizant of the limitations of our effort. Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions represent roughly 1.6 percent of global emissions and the oilsands are 0.15 per cent in our overall share. As the International Energy Agency’s chief economist has place it: “Compared to the major emitting countries, this is not peanuts, it is a small fraction of peanuts.”
Canada’s new government is appropriate to wish to play a leading role. The first step would be to remember that it’s a global issue and different countries will need to contribute in different ways. Canada is uniquely positioned to assist developing countries reduce their reliance on carbon-intensive powers. However this means more – not less – resource development in Canada.
Ian Lee is definitely an assistant professor in the Sprott School of Business at Carleton University and Sean Speer is a Senior Fellow in the Macdonald-Laurier Institute.
